STAGE TUBE: Mack is Back! Promo for Signature Theatre's THE THREEPENNY OPERA

Virginia's Tony-Award winning Signature Theatre presents The Threepenny Opera, Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill's cutting and enduring critique of capitalism and corruption. Directed by Signature Theatre's Associate Artistic Director Matthew Gardiner (Tender Napalm, Dreamgirls, Really Really), the production stars Mitchell Jarvis (Broadway's Rock of Ages) as the charismatic Macheath, known to popular culture as Mack the Knife. Click below to watch a foreboding promo for the show!

The MAX Theatre transforms into London's gritty underworld in this reimagined futuristic dystopia for The Threepenny Opera, an adaptation of John Gay's 1728 ballad-opera The Beggar's Opera, a satirical commentary on politics, poverty, injustice and corruption at all levels of society. The haves clash with the have-nots while Macheath, the ultimate sneering anti-hero, perches in the middle of the storm. Paired with a haunting jazz score by Kurt Weill, Brecht's humorous and challenging libretto, originated the popular songs "The Ballad of Mack the Knife," "Life's A Bitch (and Then You Die)" and "Pirate Jenny." Signature's production will feature an adaptation by Robert David MacDonald (book) and Jeremy Sams (lyrics), which first appeared at London's Donmar Warehouse in 1994.

Jarvis is joined by Natascia Diaz (Jenny; Broadway's Man of LaMancha, Signature's Brother Russia, Kiss of the Spiderwoman),Erin Driscoll (Polly Peachum; Signature's Miss Saigon, [title of show], Urinetown, Ford's Theatre's Violet), Rick Hammerly (Lucy Brown; Signature's Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Angels in America), Donna Migliaccio(Mrs. Peachum; Broadway's Ragtime, Signature's Beaches, Gypsy, Assassins, Sweeney Todd), Bobby Smith (Mr. Peachum; Broadway's Crazy for You, Signature's Spin, Company, See What I Wanna See), and John Leslie Wolfe (Tiger Brown; Broadway's Parade, Passion, Evita).

Rounding out the cast are Aaron Bliden (Folger Theatre's Romeo and Juliet), Jamie Eacker (Signature's Spin), Paul Scanlan(Signature's Company), Ryan Sellers (Signature's Miss Saigon), Thomas Adrian Simpson (Signature's Company), Jessica Thorne (Studio Theatre's Rocky Horror Show), and Katherine Renee Turner (Ford's Theatre's The Laramie Project).

The creative team includes Musical Direction by Gabriel Mangiante; Dialect Direction by Lynn Watson; Scenic Design by Misha Kachman; Costume Design by Frank Labovitz; Wig Design by Anne Nesmith; Lighting Design by Colin K. Bills; Sound Design by Lane Elms; Video Design by Rocco DiSanti; and Production Stage Manager Kerry Epstein.

The Threepenny Opera begins performances on April 22 and runs for 6 weeks through June 1, 2014 in Signature's MAXTheatre. All tickets are now on sale. More information is at signature-theatre.org.

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